They held on tight – then the tornado ripped their arms off
When the tornado sirens went off in Laurel County, Kentucky, last Friday evening, Paul and Gail Cline did their usual thing during storms: they prayed and then held hands. In their 60s, having spent decades married, losing one of their parents to cancer,
Paul fighting dementia and Gail quietly enduring every challenge, the couple agreed to help Paul settle in their home. Still, they had no idea what was about to happen.
About 7:13 p.m., an EF-4 tornado began in the west of Somerset and smashed all the way through southeastern Kentucky, entering Pulaski and Laurel counties. There had been a bigger outbreak of severe weather and the resulting storm killed 19 people, with even more hurt, losing homes or just managing to survive.
The storm wasn’t just an event for the Clines. The event greatly transformed both the mental and physical condition of their daily life. Inside their house—
a wood-frame house that Paul’s grandfather had made for them—was where the twister hit. As the walls bent and the windows blew inward, they went to the bedroom, linked arms and got ready for things to get bad.
The storm arrived and hit us all at once. Taylor Baker and Brandy Bowman, the nieces who are now speaking for the family, say what happened next was almost impossible to imagine.
Because the wind shear was so bad, the tornado severed each person’s arm from its opposite shoulder. Both were still connected, Paul’s arm missing and Gail’s arm gone, but they were horribly injured and still breathing.
“It keeps coming back to me that they must have gone through something terrible,” Baker shared. Even though the tornado was trying to separate them, they held onto one another tightly. It did occur, as predicted. They still clutched onto their resentment.
Moments after the screams, a neighbor heard them and went out into the wreckage to save the people. Seeing this was quite distressing. Apart from some gaps between them, the house was packed with bits of glass, insulation, bricks and different household objects.
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The wood of the furniture was broken up like a box of matches. A neighbor saw the couple under the roofing material and broken part of a wall. Gail managed to cry out, saying “There’s an arm down the hall,” unaware at that moment that it belonged to her.
Quick action by first responders saw them apply tourniquets to stop the bleeding, then take the Clines by ambulance to UK Hospital. At that point, doctors decided it was necessary for Gail to be put in a medically induced coma. Besides her severed arm, debris ruptured several of her ribs and pierced her lungs. A respirator is being used to help her breathe and she is still in critical condition.
His body is very hurt, although he has managed to speak at times. Nevertheless, he doesn’t understand what’s happened because the confusion from his trauma makes things extra challenging for him. “He’s been asking for his friend Gail,” said Bowman. He can’t recall ever losing his arm. He believes she is somewhere in the next room.”
The family’s 12-year-old dog, named Sadie, had been missing during the storm. Miraculously, the next day, authorities found the little girl asleep on the leftovers of the mattress, among shattered drywall and splinters. Officials stated that only after offering food were they able to move the dog away from danger.
As with many homes in the area, almost nothing remains of the Clines’ house except a foundation. A chimney with no roof still stands up straight amid a pile of broken wood and metal. There had been many successive generations in the family and the property was the place for birthdays, shared Bible readings and summer dinners on the porch.
“We spent our childhood here in Pocantico,” explained Baker. Ma Maw cared for us at the house while we were growing up. Sadie, my sister and I used to race through the fields, form forts from the hay and scale the trees behind the house. All that mattered to them is gone now.
Family members have begun a GoFundMe campaign to pay for the couple’s medical expenses, new prosthetics and short-term housing. We have received overwhelming support for our cause from people all through the state and beyond. People in the neighborhood have given the Clines meals, clothes and offered to foster Sadie until everyone is healthy.
Still, getting back to normal after these hurricanes will take a long time. Both of them will face major surgeries, plenty of rehab and must seek mental health assistance. Since neither had a home left after the storm and both their vehicles were wrecked, they were facing hardships right away.
Those close to the pair say that while the accident broke many other bonds, the Clines’ connection has not been harmed.
The bishop called them godly people, he said. Belief has always been what supports them most. They hung on to each other as tight as they could. That’s just what they do. They kept on and I think they’re not going to stop now.
All across Kentucky, flags were lowered to honor the 19 people Governor Andy Beshear said were killed. Speaking at a press event, he said every child involved was loved by God. We mourn with their families and hope for the fast recovery of those still in hospital.
All ten victims, including the Clines, are now in critical care at UK Hospital. After the storm, a mixture of locals, kids from school groups and even sports rivals banded together to help in coummunity centers, bringing supplies, welcoming everyone and lending a hand.
Authorities are monitoring more storms that could strike next week, telling communities that are still cleaning up to get ready again. Still, the moment they think of from that day, for many in Laurel County and elsewhere, is Paul and Gail holding each other as the storms raged.
